Dries dazzles in OT as Stars top Condors

Texas has won two straight overtime games and nine of their last 12 games

Sheldon Dries scored the game-winning goal in overtime and the Texas Stars beat the Bakersfield Condors 3-2 on Friday night

Andy Neitupski/Texas Stars

Posted
Friday, December 8, 2017 11:00 pm

By ZACH SMITH, HCN Sports Editor

Sheldon Dries was at the end of his shift and just didn’t want to turn the puck over with just over a minute left in overtime.

He did a lot more than that.

The rookie spun around a defender and collected his own rebound, giving the Stars a 3-2 win over the Bakersfield Condors 3-2 Friday night at the HEB Center. Texas has won nine of their last 12 games.

“I figured if I could just do that little spin-o-rama move and keep possession and take it to the corner, that would be fine,” Dries said. “I got through luckily and put it in. That was a good team win.”

The tally was his seventh on the season, fourth-most on the team. Jason Dickinson scored his team-leading 11th goal in the first period and Denis Gurianov scored for the second time this year in the second.

Travis Morin picked up his sixth point in five games with an assist on the game-winning goal.

Landon Bow stopped 35 of 37 shots in the win. He leads all AHL rookies with 10 wins and boasts a 2.70 goals against average this season.

“He didn’t fold after the soft goal,” Stars head coach Derek Laxdal said. “His skating has allowed him to be a lot more powerful from post to post and play a quieter game. That’s part of the growth pattern.”

Bakersfield got on the board first when Zach O’Brien centered the puck to Brad Malone on an odd-man rush less than four minutes into the game. Dickinson equalized when a bouncing shot ricocheted off his shoulder five minutes later.

Gurianov scored his second goal of the season midway through the second period. He deked the Bakersfield defender and went to his backhand and his shot trickled under the goalie to give Texas its first lead of the game.

The flashy play continued for the Stars as the Russian had some more fact puck handling a couple minutes later and Samuel Faberge checked a Condor into the Texas bench.

Bakersfield scored two minutes into the third period on a tricky wraparound goal that squirted just under Bow’s skate but stopped the next 13 shots he faced.

“(Bakersfield) has been a third-period club all year and we knew they were going to have a push,” Laxdal said. “When you’re in a game like that and you can get trapped in the defensive zone, it kills the energy so we needed someone to step up and push the energy back.”

Last time out, the Stars beat the Iowa Wild 5-4 in overtime on Tuesday night. Dickinson tied the game in the third period and Morin scored the game-winner.

The Stars return home for the third game of a five-game homestead against the Ontario Reign Saturday at 7 p.m. Texas and Ontario face off again Wednesday night at 7:30 p.m. and the Cleveland Monsters next Saturday at 7 p.m.

“It wasn’t our best game,” Dries said. “We’ll take it but we’ve got to improve for tomorrow night.”